which detergent?

thelawman

howdy, i spent a few euros and got some decent bibs and jerseys, which is the best detergent to use that won't damage them in the long run, any brand recommendations ? thanks

Raam

I have never paid any attention to detergent. Tonnes of cycling kit which is years old and looking well enough.

Diggabot

thelawman wrote: »

howdy, i spent a few euros and got some decent bibs and jerseys, which is the best detergent to use that won't damage them in the long run, any brand recommendations ? thanks

It doesn't really matter... just don't use softener.

italodisco

Fairy is the best not only for clothes but your down belows, make sure to never leave padded sorts in the machine damp for ages after the wash and also a minimum 60 degree wash on the shorts to kill athletes foot / Candida/ sweat fungus .

Go with fairy , I've been through them all and fairy wins

doozerie

I like the Assos detergent, it has always worked well for me. It is expensive though, and I'm unconvinced that it justifies the price, but the smell of it is slightly addictive.

I've used Woolite in the past but while it was okay it didn't always do a good job of removing dirt and I've never been a big fan of the smell either.

These days I use Dri-Pak Liquid Soap Flakes for all of my merino clothing, cycling kit, and anything that I put in a delicates wash (e.g. hiking trousers). I've been very impressed by it. I've yet to use it on waterproof jackets but online anecdotes suggest it is great for that too. It was recommended for washing merino by a UK site that supplies good quality merino products and it was on that basis that I gave it a go - I'd been using dried soap flakes for merino kit prior to that but apparently that's not a good choice. I've become a total convert since then, I find it very effective at removing dirt, the scent is innocuous, and it's very cheap compared to the other alternatives I've tried. Tesco stocks it in the UK for a very good price apparently, they briefly stocked it once here too in their Rathfarnham store but once they sold out they never got it back again and said they have no plans to, so I've been buying it in bulk via that link above.

Oh, and I always wash my cycling kit at 30C, as per the washing instructions on most/all of the kit I own. That has always been more than adequate to eliminate stains and odours as long as the detergent is good enough. My cycling kit lasts me many years, personally I see no need to wash it at higher temperatures and believe it would be likely to shorten its effective lifespan considerably (I'd be particularly concerned about the chamois at higher temperatures).

T-Maxx

Aldi/Lidl's finest.

@40 degrees.

Sorted.

Eamonnator

I'd agree with Doozerie, about the temperature. 30 degrees is ample.

SpaceTime

Good quality liquid detergent, dosed correctly and wash at 30 or 40 C on a synthetics cycle.

Cotton cycles use higher levels of tumbling and can be a bit too rough on sports kit.

No softener / conditioner as it's not absorbed and will make your kit feel slimey or may cause it to have oily patches.

Persil Small and Mighty bio works great for me.

eeeee

Given the fabric composition of cycling gear it should NEVER be washed above 30 on anything more than a delicates cycle if you want it to last. The tumbling/wringing action of longer washing machine cycles deforms the fabric, and stretches it. Also using harsh or biological powders will disintegrate the weave of the fabric, breaking down the threads. really a delicates cycle with the most gentle detergent you can find (Woollite or soap flakes) is the best option for kit longevity. Unless something terrible is going on I don't see the need for disinfection. Wash it as soon as you can after taking it off, and you will be fine. Most machines have a 30min or so delicates cycle, turn temp up to 30 if you want and job's done

SpaceTime

I know a bit about the science behind this stuff.

Biological doesn't mean it's harsh. Quite the opposite actually. Biological laundry products contain enzymes that breakdown stains without using harsh detergents, bleach and other chemicals. They're by far the most gentle approach! They also make short, low temp washes very effective.

The enzymes used are similar to what's in your mouth and digestive system. They usually have protease (protein stains), amalyse (starches and sugars), Mannanase (guar gum and other similar foods etc), pectate lyase (helps breakdown fruit, veg stains like pasta) and lipase (fats).

Non bio is actually totally reliant on chemicals to do the cleaning.

Powders usually contain peroxide bleach.
Liquids don't

Colour detergents normally don't have florescent dyes. These are optical brightening agents. They're added to most regular laundry detergents. They absorb UV and emit the energy add visible light. So, your whites literally glow!

These can be a bad idea on dark colours.

It's not the bio that's the harsh stuff, it's the universal powders that all contain bleach.

You can't use bio on wool or silk because it dissolves the proteins. It's unlikely you'd be wearing silk or wool cycling gear. They're ideal for synthetics and cotton.

ThisRegard

Genuine question then, so why is non bio recommended for baby clothes given the mess on their clothes is probably mostly proteins? Given the name, I would have thought the bio stuff would be preferred given it's more natural, is it just because you can be allergic to the natural enzymes in it?

SpaceTime

ThisRegard wrote: »

Genuine question then, so why is non bio recommended for baby clothes given the mess on their clothes is probably mostly proteins? Given the name, I would have thought the bio stuff would be preferred given it's more natural, is it just because you can be allergic to the natural enzymes in it?

It's a very uniquely British and Irish thing.

When Lever introduced Biological Persil in the 1960s the product caused rashes. The tabloid media went to town on it. The result was they launched Persil Non Bio and British consumers have always had this notion that Bio=harsh.

Lever had made a HUGE deal about enzymes eating stains and how it was biological.

The reaction may have been nothing to do with the rather simple single enzyme it contained back then and everything to do with some other ingredient as they'd completely reformulated it. Other products contained enzymes from the very start and caused no problem.

In all other markets they've Sensitive or Hypoallergenic detergents. Non Bio doesn't exist. Most of these are biological, they're just tested for skin sensitivity.

The most likely causes of allergy are actually perfumes and the optical brightener ingredients, not the enzymes.

It's actually pretty stupid not to have just launched Ariel / Persil sensitive. In most other markets these are usually scent free or very unscented and very heavily tested for skin reactions yet still remove baby puke with enzymes.

If your baby isn't allergic to mainstream bio products there's absolutely no reason not to use them.

Nappysan and Biotex are basically a cocktail of enzymes designed to clean baby stuff for example.

I'd be more concerned with things like highly scented fabric softener etc as this actually stays in your clothes and gets on your skin.

Also some of the products with Lasting Freshness basically contain microcaosules of scent that literally stick to your clothes and slowly release chemical scents. I'm not very keen on that myself.

The notion that Non-Bio is skin safe isn't very scientific though. Just one of those weird quirks of marketing history in Britain.

T-Maxx

Yeah I'd suspect the enzymes in the bio stuff could have an adverse effect on sensitive baby skins.

ThisRegard

Whoever thought the world of detergents would be so interesting on a Saturday morning!

seany15

I found myself reading that with great interest. Now if only i could get herself to wash my gear....

cormie

I've been trying to avoid using chemical detergents myself and have opted for the eco friendly and home remedy approach, soap nuts, vinegar and the likes. This all works fine for day to day wear, but when it comes to sports clothes, even though I wash them after every use, hang them up to air before washing, take them out of the washing machine straight after the wash and hang them up again, then into the hot press once there dry to the touch, and they are ready for use again, they still don't smell too fresh.

I ended up buying some regular liquid capsules from Lidl (actually I got non-bio and now I'm now so sure I should have :pac:), it leaves a fresher, although unnatural, smell so I'm going to use these every few washes instead of the eco method.

Would be nice to find something completely natural while at the same time performing well and leaving a nice, fresh smell too.

SpaceTime

T-Maxx wrote: »

Yeah I'd suspect the enzymes in the bio stuff could have an adverse effect on sensitive baby skins.

You could find your baby is totally allergic to one product and not another. The enzymes are actually not the most likely allergen.

Persil Non Bio however is actually dermatologically tested. I think Fairy and a few others are too.

You be sure though that ALL consumer detergents and other products that come into contact with your skin are tested and retested. Many of them are still (sadly) tested on animals for this kind of reason.

In general if you react to one detergent, try another one.

I actually react very badly to a 100% natural one! I think I'm allergic to one of the plant-based ingredients!

It's really all about your immune system and how it interprets various molecules.

Nettles and jellyfish stings are 100%,natural but it doesn't mean they're good for you.

....

Ecover is actually quite good if you're looking for all natural and very simple ingredients.
They've totally plant based ingredients and have bio and non bio.

Main thing I like is it works and doesn't leave you smelling like a car air freshener!

I did loads of research on this due to allergy problems myself and I have relatives involved the design of processes to produce some of this type of stuff. Hence all the info!

I think though its very important to know exactly what you're putting on your skin. You'd be amazed at how many ingredients are in some of the products. They only list a summary on the label but disclose the full list (by law) on their websites. Usually you have to do a bit of digging !

cormie

Does ecover use the same enzymes you mentioned above for breaking down the dirt or how does it do it? What about this stuff? http://www.lillysecoclean.com/collections/laundry-products

SpaceTime

cormie wrote: »

Does ecover use the same enzymes you mentioned above for breaking down the dirt or how does it do it? What about this stuff? http://www.lillysecoclean.com/collections/laundry-products

Some versions of Ecover do, the non bio doesn't.

Enzymes are plant derived in their case.

I'd doubt Lilly's contains much that you wouldn't find in your kitchen. That's very, very natural stuff and made in Ireland too.

One other thing - if you are using very mild detergents you'll need to occasionally run your machine at 95C with old fashioned normal bio washing powder. Otherwise it can tend to become very stinky as you'll get bacteria growing in it due to it being moist, warm and has a source of food - natural washing products and oils, proteins etc from your body.

It can result in black mould and other stinking stuff colonising the outer drum and hoses.

So throw in a load of towels and put on a hot wash or you'll risk having a machine that becomes a bioreactor, evolves new life and walks out the back door

cormie

Ok so the Ecover bio stuff is really just as safe as the non bio and it's a marketing hiccup back years ago that is making all the companies push a "non bio" line too?

All the Lily's stuff says non bio. I've used the orange one before and although it works fine for the day-to-day wear, the sports wear again didn't smell completely fresh after. Just to note by the way, I don't have a B/O problem :pac: The smell is nothing to do with B/O, just could be a bit fresher.

shaka

I don't wash mine at anything more than 30 degrees due to material.

I don't use nonBio as it causes me irritation down below.

Diggabot why no softener?

SpaceTime

cormie wrote: »

Ok so the Ecover bio stuff is really just as safe as the non bio and it's a marketing hiccup back years ago that is making all the companies push a "non bio" line too?

All the Lily's stuff says non bio. I've used the orange one before and although it works fine for the day-to-day wear, the sports wear again didn't smell completely fresh after. Just to note by the way, I don't have a B/O problem :pac: The smell is nothing to do with B/O, just could be a bit fresher.

Bio might actually help with the body odours as they're mostly long protein chains contained in sweat. They'll be broken down by protease and the surfactants will remove oils.

Try something like Persil Small and Mighty bio liquid. It's the least smelly one that I could find.

The capsule version is so scented that I couldn't stick it at all and I found Ariel liquid too scented too.

I just wish the main stream consumer product companies here would recognise that not everyone wants to smell like a fake summer meadow or pine cones!

In the US they've always got 'Free and Clear' versions that are scent free. Same in France you can get Sensitive versions that don't smell.

cormie

It's not even body odour I can smell off the clothes, just more of a musty smell, actually, it's probably more to do with the fact my place is freezing and suffers from very slight dampness during the colder months so the clothes might be hanging to dry for at least 2 days before they are ready for the hot press, maybe the sports clothes just get musty more easily. I might give the ecover bio a shot and see how it works.

fits

Great thread! I have both ecover and lillys in my utility. I only bought lillys the first time last week. I cant stand the artificial smells that come with a lot of detergent. Never knew that about bio/nonbio. I might try bio again some time for the tough washing.

Statler

This:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Halo-Proactive-Sports-Wash-Pack/dp/B005WHF7ZO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1404560782&sr=8-1&keywords=halo+sports+wash

pprendeville

i just handwash mine in the shower after a spin. tiz mainly a bit sweaty. would only go in a washing machine if it was filthy dirty. an aul bar of soap and rub it into the sweaty area and give it a rinse and bobs your uncle.

eeeee

Space-Time you're my hero.


*swoooooon*

Luxman

Sorry to dig up an old(ish ) thread, club spin yesterday was a damp and cold affair , not particularly mucky but came home with lots of muck/sh*t spots on the gear, washed it fairly quickly after I got home but can still see staining on the yellow parts of the bibs and jacket. Typical cycling wash (30 degrees) with Ecover powder and no softener. Any ideas on pre-treating to remove the staining or alternative detergents. I don't want to raise the temperature of the wash. Cheers for any advice

Lux

Big Eejit

Luxman wrote: »

Sorry to dig up an old(ish ) thread, club spin yesterday was a damp and cold affair , not particularly mucky but came home with lots of muck/sh*t spots on the gear, washed it fairly quickly after I got home but can still see staining on the yellow parts of the bibs and jacket. Typical cycling wash (30 degrees) with Ecover powder and no softener. Any ideas on pre-treating to remove the staining or alternative detergents. I don't want to raise the temperature of the wash. Cheers for any advice

Lux

Pretreating with washing up liquid works. Either that or cold soaking in biological washing powder. Warm water apparently 'sets' the stains anyway, so better not to raise the temperature.